Hello and welcome to my review of Rush by Lisa Patton. There is an Amazon Affiliate link at the bottom of this post for the book. If you choose to purchase from my link I do make a very small commission off of every purchase.
Set in modern day Oxford, Mississippi, on the Ole Miss campus, bestselling author Lisa Patton’s RUSH is a story about women—from both ends of the social ladder—discovering their voices, courage and empowerment.
When Lilith Whitmore, the well-heeled House Corp President of Alpha Delta Beta, one of the premiere sororities on campus, appoints recent empty-nester Wilda to the Rush Advisory Board, Wilda can hardly believe her luck. What’s more, Lilith suggests their daughters, both incoming freshman, room together. What Wilda doesn’t know is that it’s all part of Lilith’s plan to ensure her own daughter receives an Alpha Delt bid—no matter what.
Cali Watkins possesses all the qualities sororities are looking for in a potential new member. She’s kind and intelligent, makes friends easily, even plans to someday run for governor. But her resume lacks a vital ingredient. Pedigree. Without family money Cali’s chances of sorority membership are already thin, but she has an even bigger problem. If anyone discovers the dark family secrets she’s hiding, she’ll be dropped from Rush in an instant.
For twenty-five years, Miss Pearl—as her “babies” like to call her—has been housekeeper and a second mother to the Alpha Delt girls, even though it reminds her of a painful part of her past she’ll never forget. When an opportunity for promotion arises, it seems a natural fit. But Lilith Whitmore slams her Prada heel down fast, crushing Miss Pearl’s hopes of a better future. When Wilda and the girls find out, they devise a plan destined to change Alpha Delta Beta—and maybe the entire Greek system—forever.
Achingly poignant, yet laugh-out-loud funny, RUSH takes a sharp nuanced look at a centuries-old tradition while exploring the complex, intimate relationships between mothers and daughters and female friends. Brimming with heart and hope for a better tomorrow, RUSH is an uplifting novel universal to us all.
Ever since high school, all I wanted was to be in sorority. I would research schools based on what their Greek life was like, and I was determined to be in a sorority. I would spend HOURS on Pinterest finding all the fun greek life projects I could do once my time came, I was preparing myself to be the best Little and eventually the best Big too. And in the end I chose a school that has no Greek life, my school has been the best choice for me but boy oh boy do I wish I could be in a sorority.
This story touched upon so many different topics that are so important: racism, classism, privilege, and so much more. It shows how complex female relationships are and also how complex female-female relationships are. It also shows how hard it is to see the person you have become when your actions are being challenged.
I loved these characters so much and as I was reading I was WISHING I could be an Alpha Delta Beta sister. SO BADLY. I loved how this book was able to give us inside to sorority life but showed it to us in the best light and showed just how important these relationships are. I went to sleep away camp for ten years and camp reminds me big time of Greek Life, the relationships and the way that no matter what happens you have each others back.
The relationships between the women of all generations, backgrounds, classes and more were beautifully shown through the story of Rush. I loved being able to see all the sides of the relationships.
Miss Pearl is by far my favorite character. She is one of the nicest, sweetest and hard working characters we meet. She cares about every girl in the house as if they are her own children, and these girls treat her like their mother. I was rooting for her the whole book, because without her that whole house would have burnt to the ground.
At the beginning I really hated Annie Laurie Whitmore, she had zero personality and she was just a stuck up brat but I think her development in the story was one of the best even though it was one of the most subtle.
This book was so different than so many of the books I have read before, I love how it focuses on different relationships throughout the book. I didn’t think I really liked multiple POV books before but this one showed me that really do. Not only that, but it challenged my thinking of the way we treat others and the way we treat those who are different from us. It shows that while we think we have a come a long way, we still have a very long way to go.
I love the fact that there were characters who challenged each other, making each character have to think. Even though this was a library book I think I might purchase myself a copy.
This is a book of sisterhood, friendship, learning, loving and growing.
I loved this book more than anything, I can’t even put into words the amount of love I have for this book.
I have attached an Amazon Affiliate link if you want to purchase a copy of the book. If you do purchase through this link, I do make a very small commission off of every purchase made using my links.
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